The Butterfly Effect
by djduchess
Summary: Spoiler Alert: This follows the events of the season one finale. All around them the anomalies began to close and with a cry of realization they knew something had changed. The only questions were could they make it back home and if they did what were they going to find on the other side?
1. Through the Looking Glass

Author's Note: Seeing as how we may not get a second season of Primeval: New World I've decided to write this as a way to continue the story after the massive cliffhanger that we were left with at the end of season one. So if you haven't finished the first season and don't want to be spoiled please refrain from reading until you've done so.

**THROUGH THE LOOKING GLASS**

* * *

**It has been said that something as small as the flutter of a butterfly's wing can ultimately **

**cause a typhoon halfway around the world – Chaos Theory**

* * *

Finally, there had been justice. Evan Cross lowered his gun staring at the massive creature he'd just destroyed. The Albertosaurus was dead, the same one that had destroyed his life six years ago. He had allowed it to happen. Brooke was gone, but at least he had this one moment of complete vengeance. The moment lasted no more than a second as he turned, reaching out to help Dylan Weir to her feet.

"Are you okay?" Evan asked as he helped steady Dylan.

"Yeah," Dylan said, her eyes glued to the dead carcass of the Albertosaurus. There was something so devastating about seeing the creature lying there, but that's not what had kept her eyes glued there. That creature had just killed Brooke Cross and Mac Rendell, and in a way she had helped it. She knew there would have been consequences if she had helped Evan save Brooke or kept Mac from running in to save Evan, but she also knew that it would have cost more lives, maybe hundreds or thousands if she had stopped it. She only hoped now that it was supposed to die right here at this time and space.

Suddenly the peace that had fallen over their world for that brief moment dissolved as the anomalies all around them started to close quickly. Evan and Dylan looked around, confusion lining their faces before the realization hit.

"We changed something," Evan said, his eyes glancing down to meet Dylan's for a second as another anomaly zipped out of being.

The next moment they were running, pushing themselves to move as fast as they possibly could to the one anomaly that led back to their time and place. There was no telling what had happened, what had changed, but they both knew in their hearts that something disastrous lay on the other side of the anomaly. There was no time to think now, to understand what had happened, or to even retrace what had gone wrong. The only thing they could do was push themselves faster until their bodies passed through the fracturing of space and time and back into their own world, dreading what they would find.

They crashed through the anomaly, Dylan's strawberry blonde hair whipping out as it closed behind them. The change in surface made her knees buckle and the next thing she felt was her body hitting the ground as she rolled to a stop, her feet taking out Evan. For a minute all they could do was lie there, completely tangled together, Dylan's head resting on Evan's chest as they stared up at the roof of the mine. Their pulses were racing and it took everything in them to calm down. They had made it through the anomaly before it closed, barely, but they had. There was little consolation in that thought though; because the world had changed of that they were certain.

"Are you okay?" Dylan asked as she finally found the strength to sit up, her head turning to take in Evan's sprawled form.

"Yeah," Evan replied as he slowly got to his feet, groaning only slightly as he stood. His hand pressed against his rib cage where the gun had bruised him from the fall.

Dylan winced as she pulled herself up, her trousers had been ripped in the fall and she could see where several layers of her skin on her knee had been ripped off, leaving it raw and bloody. She tentatively took a step to see how bad the pain was. Her knee buckled again and she would have hit the ground if Evan hadn't wrapped his arm around her waist. Apparently she had done more than just skinned her knee in the fall.

"Thanks," Dylan said as she got her feet under her once again, making certain not to put too much weight on her left leg. Evan didn't release his hold on her, instead he slipped around to her other side and hunched enough to allow her to put her arm around his neck so she could walk easier.

"See that's why I didn't want you to come out here all alone, cause I knew you'd get into trouble and need my help," Evan said, a smile touching his lips as he repeated the words he'd said to her so many months ago.

Dylan laughed under her breath, her lips curving up in a smile, as she looked over at him. She anchored herself to his shoulder and allowed his arm to steady her. She couldn't ignore the feel of his muscular frame pressing against hers, but she tried to. The last thing that should have been crossing her mind was how it felt to have his arm wrapped around her.

That's when the silence that had permeated the air around them suddenly seemed to implode around them. Their ears were ringing, not by some massive auditory vibration in the air, but by the complete lack of noise. Dylan's eyes flickered to the space where a team of soldiers had stood guard over the anomaly. They were gone and she couldn't hear anything outside of the mine.

Evan met Dylan's green eyes and neither one of them could mask the fear that they read in the others eyes. Something was very wrong. Together they moved, Dylan wincing at every step her left leg took even with Evan's support. The old copper mine stretched around them, echoing their footsteps back at them, haunting them with the silence. Had so much changed? Where were all the soldiers? Where was Project Magnet?

The silence stalked them through the mine until they crossed the threshold of the door. Sound caught up to them then, the shouts of people, the movement of trucks and gear. There was a cacophony of noise and for a moment they just stood there taking it all in. The fear of change had been so intense that neither one of them had breathed comfortably over the last few moments. As they stood there both of them released a long sigh before they turned to look at each other. The smile's came first, followed by the cry of joy, and their arms flung around each other, completely ecstatic by the fact that all their fears had been for nothing. They were safe and everything was the same so far. Maybe they were wrong and nothing had changed after all.

"Evan! Dylan!" Ange's voice filled up their ears and they both turned as Ange and several members of a medical team were already racing toward them.

One of the medical team members took over for Evan and slipped their arm around Dylan. They were already helping her to a cargo box to sit down on while another one was ushering Evan to a similar crate to check his injuries. Ange was pacing, looking madder than Evan had ever seen her. Anger was permeating off her, but her worry lines were clearly visible.

"What were you thinking?" Ange began in irritation.

"Ange you know why we had to," Evan said simply brushing off the hands of the medical examiner who was dabbing at the cut on his forehead.

"So it could kill Brooke?" she bit back viciously.

"To change one thing could have unraveled our entire existence," he replied in a whisper.

"You killed her. It was your fault this time, not that dinosaur."

"Stop!" Dylan cried as she glared at Ange.

"I know," Evan said, his emotions catching up with him. Tears stung his eyes, but he didn't let them fall as he stared at Ange.

"Stop this. It wasn't his fault," Dylan said, ignoring the person that was wrapping her knee tight enough to make it hurt.

"You, you're the one that talked him into this. He wouldn't have done this if you'd just kept out of his life," Ange said turning on Dylan.

"Excuse me?" Dylan asked incredulously.

"That's enough Ange," Evan said forcefully.

Ange turned her eyes on Evan and shook her head. She was trying to hold back tears. This had been their moment to change their entire lives. If Evan had just left it alone Brooke would still be alive and they would have nothing to with anomalies or dinosaurs. She was so sure he would have accepted it all, but Dylan had to butt her nose into everything, had to convince him that it was wrong. Ange was about to make another comment when another voice interrupted.

"Mr. Cross, Miss Weir you've returned safely. I take it the Albertosaurus was taken care of?" Lieutenant Leeds asked as he made his way to the group.

"Yeah, but Mac… Mac's dead," Dylan answered, her head bowing as the shock of what happened caught up to her.

"Who?" Lt. Leeds asked in confusion.


	2. Brave New World

**BRAVE NEW WORLD**

* * *

"**I know who I was when I got up this morning, **

**but I think I must have been changed several times since then." – Lewis Carroll**

* * *

Previously:

Evan and Dylan managed to slip back through the Anomaly before it closed with only minor injuries. Their fear stemmed only in the fact that something seemed to be different, but at first glance all was right with their world. That is until they were forced to break the news of Mac Rendell's untimely death at the hands of the Albertosaurus:

"Mac…Mac's dead," Dylan answered, her head bowing as the shock of what happened caught up to her.

"Who?" Lt. Leeds asked in confusion.

* * *

The heat from the summer day beat down on Dylan as she sat there, but it didn't stop the cold from seeping into her bones. The chill in the wind was hardly enough to cause the shiver that ran up her spine, but it did add to it. For five minutes they had a moment to believe that everything had stayed the same, that they had been wrong, but the look of confusion that flitted across Ken Leeds face was enough to prove them wrong. Fear blossomed anew in her heart as her green eyes flickered over to Evan's.

"Mac Rendell," Evan said without hesitation, hardly keeping the fear out of his voice.

"I am unfamiliar with that name," Lt. Leeds replied, his brows knitting in concern.

"That's impossible, he was just here," Dylan replied finally breaking from her shocked state and pushing away from the medical staff.

"He's the other member of my team, cheeky British fellow?" Evan asked as he got to his feet, adrenalin kicking into his body as the realization of what was going on spurred him into an anxious state.

"Evan what are you talking about?" Ange asked, her head shaking.

"If Mac's not here that means those people we saved…those creatures," Evan said as he turned to Dylan.

"I know," Dylan said as fear pricked at her heart.

"Toby, is Toby all right?" Evan asked hurriedly, afraid that she too had disappeared in this version of reality.

"She's fine. Dr. Fridkin was able to construct an anti-venom and she's recovering nicely. You two on the other hand should get checked out further," Lt. Leeds replied, nodding to the medical team that was still loitering around.

"We're fine," Evan and Dylan said together.

"That remains to be seen," Ange said.

"Where's Hall?" Evan asked, his temper flaring. This was exactly why he'd been so insistent about things being put back. If anyone was to blame it was that man and his insistence on messing with the past.

Ken Leeds cleared his throat and glanced at Angelika Finch for a moment. Some unspoken conversation was conveyed in that one look. Evan knew that look, hated it even. It told him that things with the Albertosaurus had gone worse than he'd thought. A glance at Dylan told him she was thinking the same thing.

"He's dead isn't he?" Dylan asked.

"Colonel Hall did not survive the injuries he sustained from the Albertosaurus," Leeds confirmed with a nod of his head.

A somber cloud hung over the air at those words. As much as Hall had done to mess up the space time continuum death was still too harsh of a sentence. Evan shook his head, meeting Dylan's own startled gaze. There was so much that needed to be said, but first they had to find out everything that had changed.

"Evan! Dylan! I'm so glad you both made it!" a voice shouted before a familiar brunette launched herself into Dylan's arms quickly and then turned to do the same thing to Evan, clearly happy they were both alive and well.

Evan felt the world roll underneath him as Samantha Sedaris clung to him. Fresh pain split through him at the familiarity at which she regarded both of them. Her presence there meant more than he wanted to admit. She was part of their team; it was the only explanation as to why she'd be there and why Leeds and Ange weren't surprised to see her.

"What are you doing here?" Evan asked cautiously as he took in the woman he had seen dead at Cross Photonics months ago.

"I helped you two get free…" Sam said as she pulled free, her brows knitting in confusion.

"You're dead," Dylan whispered in shock.

"Okay what's wrong with you two?" Ange asked, her eyes moving back and forth between the two of them.

"How could things be that different?" Dylan asked.

"I don't know, but we won't have any idea of what changed unless we get to the files," Evan said.

"Are you two okay?" Sam asked, worry lacing her voice, her eyes wide.

"Yeah," Evan replied, nodding his head slowly. None of them would believe what happened. He knew that. So he saved himself the headache of having to explain. He pulled off the cool exterior, but deep down Evan was barely holding it together. An emotional breakdown here in front of everyone wasn't going to help him or Dylan though, so he held it together. Once he and Dylan had a chance to go somewhere they could talk privately then they'd be able to discuss what had happened and what they had to do to figure out what was going on in this version of reality that they'd found themselves in.

"Do you want to go see Toby now?" Sam asked, "As long as the Captain here is okay with that?"

Evan jerked his head up to Leeds, the question had been directed at Lt. Leeds, which meant that it had taken less than five minutes for the call to go through to put Leeds in charge. They'd only been gone a short time and yet in that time period their entire world had shifted out from under their feet.

"Captain?" Dylan asked.

"I was going to wait until you'd had a moment to breathe. I've been promoted to Captain and Project Magnet has been returned to my lead until a new Colonel can be briefed," Ken Leeds replied, a smile pulling at his lips as he straightened his stance, trying to appear taller.

"Congratulations," Dylan said, though her words rang hollow even to her own ears.

There was nothing else to say after that. Leeds allowed them to leave, only after they promised a follow up with a medical examiner tomorrow. At that point Dylan was ready to agree to anything, just so long as it meant getting away from the old copper mine and the world that had evolved around them in their absence.

Toby Nance was her chipper self and adamant about hearing the story of what had happened. The only problem was that Dylan and Evan couldn't give her the full story, not until they knew what had happened themselves. She also wanted to know all about the Anomaly Juncture they'd discovered and how she'd discovered it through the data. Evan knew that at some point he was going to have to tell Toby what happened, she would understand and might even be able to pinpoint where everything had gone wrong. Today wasn't the day to do that however, he was too tired to explain it and the changes that had already been discovered had left him feeling like he was suffering whiplash.

It was well into the evening before Evan and Dylan found themselves alone on the couches at Cross Photonics. The remains of Chinese were still wafting through the air between them as Sam headed out the door with a smile on her face. The minute the door closed Evan and Dylan were both on their feet moving to two different computers.

"What the hell did we do?" Dylan asked as they started pulling up their old case files.

"I don't know," Evan replied as he clicked through to Toby's protected files.

"They don't remember Mac, Evan. How could we remember him and not them?"

"Maybe it has to do with the fact that we were in the Anomaly when everything started changing."

"Was it the Albertosaurus? Because you killed it?" Dylan asked.

"That wouldn't explain why Mac was forgotten or why Sam is still alive," Evan said, shaking his head as they began poring over their old case files.

"This isn't right," Dylan said after a minute.

"What isn't?" Evan asked.

"The Titanoboa case."

"Out at Merison Oil?"

"Yeah, there were only two fatalities, the two Merison Oil employees that were surveying, but here it says there were four. Oh God Evan, one of them was Leo John," Dylan said, her voice catching as her words sunk in.

Evan caught her green eyes and the unshed tears that lingered there. There was such raw emotion in her and he knew why. Over the past few months she'd taken to helping Leo with another attempt at becoming part of Predator Control. Now that was over and in fact never happened, in this timeline Leo was dead.

"Dylan, I'm sorry," Evan said, but he knew the words weren't enough. Nothing would ever be enough to make up for that loss.

"He was in the boat, instead of Mac, he was trying to…it took him through…" Dylan trailed off, unable to finish as she turned away from the computer.

Evan moved then, his feet closing the distance between them and his arms encircling her. The day caught up to her and she couldn't hold the tears back any longer. Their whole lives had been uprooted. Their world was different and they had caused this, somehow they had changed everything. Dylan clung to Evan, the one person in the world that understood what she was feeling.

"How are we ever going to get used to this?" Dylan whispered against his shoulder, sniffling as she tried to regain her composure.

"We won't," Evan said softly as he ran his hand over Dylan's back, tears stinging his eyes.

"If Leo's dead, there's sure to be more people that we didn't save, creatures that we couldn't get back home in time," she said as she pulled away, her green eyes wild.

"We'll figure this out Dylan," he reassured her, his hands cupping her face, his thumb wiping away her tears.

The green in her eyes was made more pronounced by her tears and for a moment Evan found himself staring into them, his blue eyes trying to convince her that everything would be all right. They were alone in this, but they at least had each other. That was more than they could have asked for. The both of them could put all the pieces together to see the big picture, to understand everything. They were a great team.

"Our whole lives could be different now Evan, how we grew up, what happened in our lives to make us the people that we are," Dylan said softly.

"No matter what happens or happened Dylan we still have each other. Focus on that. We are still here and somehow we still met. That's what matters. We won't lose that, no matter what happens," Evan replied, caressing her cheek.

Neither one of them wanted to pull away from the other. Touch seemed to be the only thing keeping either one of them from disintegrating right there. That's why Dylan allowed him to pull her back into his arms. There were other emotions lying deep within both of them, but neither of them were ready to admit them or even acknowledge them. Instead they ended up back on the couch, Evan cradling Dylan in his arms until they both fell asleep ready to be done with the nightmare they'd fallen into.


	3. Paradise Lost

**PARADISE LOST**

* * *

"**Most human beings have an almost infinite **

**capacity for taking things for granted." –Aldous Huxley**

* * *

Previously:

Dylan and Evan find their world flipped upside down when they return home. It's a place where Mac never worked for Cross Photonics and Samantha Sedaris is part of the Special Projects group, never having been killed by a Lycaenops. Dylan and Evan must now learn how to cope with this new world, especially when they discover why things changed.

* * *

There's that awkward moment in the morning when two people who aren't romantically involved wake up to find themselves intertwined. There's that rush of red to the cheeks and the mumbled apologies for falling asleep. That's what happened as Dylan and Evan woke from their nightmare of a day, their dreams carrying those thoughts, memories, and feelings, tormenting them with every breath they took. Evan's arms were still wrapped around Dylan and their legs had become intertwined. Dylan's head was resting against Evan's chest. At some point their nightmares must have gotten the best of them, to find themselves holding on to the other as if their lives depended on it. Secretly neither one of them wanted to move, but even as comforting as it was to be in each other's arms they still had so much to discuss and research if they wanted to understand what happened. Dylan awkwardly pushed herself up before heading to freshen up, her cheeks holding a rosy glow that she couldn't quite seem to get rid of.

Evan watched her go for a moment before he swung his legs off the couch and onto the floor. Images of Brooke flashed through his mind and absently he ran his thumb over his ring finger to spin his wedding ring, but of course it was gone. He'd taken it off for Ange, but now that he sat there, his black hair ruffled beyond belief and Dylan's soft perfume still lingering on his clothes he began to wonder if he'd really taken the ring off for someone entirely different. The thought faded quickly as his mind flickered back to six years ago. The flash of the Albertosaurus tearing Brooke apart stabbed him in the heart and the thoughts pulsing through his mind felt like a betrayal to her, especially after what he now knew…that he had been the one to usher the dinosaur back through that Anomaly, he had killed her, like he always believed he had. Now he knew for certain. Brooke had died because of him.

Evan sighed, trying to stop the tears that were welling up in his eyes. Six years and still the wound was so fresh. In a way it had only happened yesterday and it was taking everything inside of him to rebuild the walls that he had placed in his mind and heart. He pressed his hands against his eyes before moving them through his hair, anything to try to appear normal, to remind himself that he'd gotten his revenge, six years too late, but still it was something.

"Coffee?" Dylan asked softly as she held out a mug of strong black coffee. She'd managed to start coffee, wash her face, and pull her hair up into a ponytail all in the ten minutes since Evan had last seen her. There was something incredibly sexy about that, the way she could just appear so put together in only a few moments. He wished he could do the same, but as it was he was still a complete wreck.

"Yeah," Evan said as he took the steaming cup, his hands warming quickly.

"Are you okay?" she asked, her words barely a whisper as she sat down next to him.

"Yeah, never better," he replied with a smile as he took a sip of the coffee.

"Animal behaviorist, remember?"

"I think we need a vacation."

"Vacation huh?" Dylan asked with a smile, allowing him to change the subject just this once.

"Anything to adjust at this point," Evan said, a smile touching his lips.

"I'm thinking Fiji would be great this time of year," Dylan said.

"Fiji in June? I'd have to go buy something other than sweaters," Evan replied.

Dylan laughed softly, her eyes dropping back down to her coffee. Evan's laugh was just as halfhearted, but there was also something comforting in being able to make lame jokes that would normally never get a laugh. There was still so much weighing on the both of them and discovering just a portion of what had changed last night was hard to cope with. The only thing they were holding on to was the hope for the future.

"All these years I've been searching for answers and I finally get them only to be left with more questions. Now our world has changed and I don't know if we can fix it or if it would even be fair to try," Evan said, his eyes glued to the dark liquid swirling around in his mug, their laughter having faded from the air.

"At this point I think the only thing we can do is keep doing what we're doing. Colonel Hall might be dead, but whoever takes his place is going to continue where he left off, we both know that. The only hope we have is to make sure that nothing else changes and we can only do that by keeping an eye on Project Magnet," she replied, her green eyes watching Evan closely, waiting for his reaction.

"If it wasn't for Hall none of this would have happened," he said harshly.

"Time travel's full of paradoxes, for all we know things happened like that all along."  
"How do you explain the change?"

"I don't know, maybe it's about Mac. He's the one that isn't here. Maybe it's all about him."

Evan's blue eyes flickered over to Dylan for a moment before he bolted out of his seat, his cup of coffee spilling over his hand, but he didn't seem to notice as he started running for the door leading out of the Tank and down to level A. Dylan didn't wait for an explanation. She just sat down her own cup and took off after him. There was something in his eyes that told her he didn't want to explain yet, so there was no point in making him try. Instead she followed him down to the place where Brooke and Mac had died six years ago.

Evan was staring at the frozen tube he'd placed Mac's body in six years ago. They'd taken it out and buried it recently. Yet there he was staring at him wearing the same uniform they'd last seen him in. It wasn't the ARC uniform he'd been in the first time he had saved Evan's life; it was the one Leeds had given him with the name Nelson stitched across the front. Evan pointed at the body before turning to Dylan.

"That's it," Evan said breathlessly.

"What is?" Dylan asked confused.

"The uniform is different. It's my fault. I found him before he'd joined the military and ended up at the ARC. I brought him back here, made him my friend. I changed our lives six years ago when I chose to find his family. I must not have had that opportunity, or maybe I couldn't find him because of the uniform. Whatever it was I caused this," Evan said as he gestured around him.

"Wait slow down, what?" Dylan asked.

"Six years ago when Mac saved me he wasn't in a military outfit, he was in that ARC uniform. That's what changed everything. That difference in the timeline would have been enough. I didn't know Mac before so he gave me his full name. It was easy for me to track down his parents, but this Mac, our Mac, he knew me. He probably didn't even bother giving me his name. If I never knew him then I would never have gone to find him. So he would never have ended up here with us, that's why no one knows who he is and why Sam is still alive. She would have been working with us before the Lycaenops, before it had a chance to kill her. This…this is my entire fault," he said.

"You can't know that," she replied.

"This is the only thing it can be Dylan. I know it and so do you. This is what caused our world to shift. Everything around us started changing when he went through that Anomaly and died in my arms six years ago."

"Evan…"

A shrill chime interrupted their conversation and both inwardly groaned. It was the Anomaly detector. After the last twenty-four hours they were both tempted to just let it be, but the chance that Leeds would use this chance to get into good graces with whatever Colonel showed up next was too high. It was hardly a moment later when Evan's phone started ringing. Toby was on the other end already giving Evan an update on where the Anomaly was. She apparently was doing it discreetly. Evan smiled at that. Even when Toby was locked in the doctor's care at Project Magnet she was refusing to give them all the information.

"Sam's on her way to the site. We should be able to catch up with her quickly enough," Evan said as he hit the end button on his iPhone.

"One day. That's all I'd like," Dylan said with a shake of her head and a smile touching her lips.

There was still tension in the air between them. It didn't help that the cold air was starting to burrow into their bones as they stood there. For a moment they just kept eye contact, letting their new world sink in. They had lost so much, but there was something to gain in this new world too. They just had to seek that out and find it. If they could hold on to the tangible long enough then maybe this world wouldn't seem so bad after all.

"I'm glad you're here with me Dylan," Evan said.

"Yeah me too," Dylan replied.

Their smiles spoke volumes, breached the tension that had thickened the air, and slowly started healing the wounds that ran through them at the loss of their world and everything they had taken for granted. Now all they had to do was find this Anomaly and any creatures that may have wandered through it before Leeds and his army of commandos destroyed everything.


	4. The Secret Garden

**THE SECRET GARDEN**

* * *

"**For so I created them free and free they must remain." – John Milton**

* * *

Previously: Evan and Dylan discover that Mac Rendell's presence in their lives may have altered the past when he rescued Evan this time around. There's no telling if the Mac of this world is alive or dead, but what they do know is they need to track down another Anomaly and whatever creatures have wandered into their time before Capt. Leeds is on the scene.

* * *

Evan pulled his jeep up beside the one Samantha Sedaris was sitting in. It looked like she'd arrived only recently, but it was hard to tell, especially when Evan thought about the way she drove. For a moment the past flickered by in his mind and he had to shake his head to rid the images. It was still so hard to look at her. Every time she smiled at him he remembered seeing her body lying broken on the floor, blood pooling around her. Every day for months he'd been hoping it had all been a nightmare and he'd wake up to find her greeting him as he walked into the office and she was headed home from her night shift. In a way that nightmare had ended, but another had taken its place. It was going to take a lot to get past the image of her bloody corpse, he only hoped he hid it well enough she didn't question him.

"So far no sign of any incursion," Sam said as she sat in the trunk of the jeep already loading the self-contained taser bolts into the taser rifle. Her long dark hair was cascading around her face, making it impossible for her to see Dylan or Evan, but she'd heard the doors open and close to know they were near.

"Good, hopefully we can get it contained before Leeds and his lackey's show up," Evan said as he pulled out his Anomaly detector.

Dylan opened the trunk and started putting together the taser guns, her green eyes traveling around the VanDusen Botanical Gardens. There were plenty of people walking the paths and taking in the plant life all around them. This was the worst place for an Anomaly to show up. Their guns were going to attract attention.

"If there is an incursion this is the worst place for it to be. We have to find a way to shut the park down," Dylan said as she spotted a man walking with his arm around a pregnant woman.

"Maybe we'll get lucky," Evan said, though his own eyes were full of concern.

"When have we ever got that lucky?" Dylan asked rhetorically.

"I hate to say it, but we all know who could clear this park out," Sam said, her voice soft as she flicked her brown eyes up to Evan.

"No. We're not calling him, not after yesterday," Evan said gruffly.

"I think I know someone that owes us a favor," Dylan said as she glanced over at Evan.

"Harlow?" he asked shortly.

"Do you have a better idea?" she asked.

"Call him."

Less than ten minutes later Harlow stood face to face with Dylan, his head shaking in exasperation. Evan was leaning against the back of the jeep and Samantha was already stalking through the gardens telling people that she was from Predator Control and needed to clear the area. It was something Mac would have done and that was something that Dylan did not want to be reminded of at the moment as she stood there trying to get her friend to cover for them.

"I can't do this Dylan. If anyone finds out or calls to verify…" Harlow said, his gloved hand rubbing over his face.

"That's why you're here. If they have questions they'll come to you," Dylan said with a smile.

"I could lose my job," he said, his brows furrowing.

"And people could lose their lives," she retorted.

"Fine, I can get it shut down for half an hour. Anything longer than that and I don't know how to contain the situation. Go in there, find whatever you need to find, and make sure there's nothing about that will eat people. That's all the time I can give you," Harlow said.

"Fine we'll take it," Dylan said.

Dylan moved to take her gun from Evan, her eyes scanning the people that were making their way out of the park, some in more hurried fashion than others. It was hard to think a predator had wandered into the heart of Vancouver, but apparently no one wanted to take that chance. It worked well for them. They had half an hour to get around twenty-two hectares of vegetation in search of an Anomaly and anything that might have come through. Sam hadn't reported anything as of yet, but it could happen at any moment and then that's when things would get interesting.

"Go ahead, I'll catch up with you," Evan said, his eyes meeting Harlow's.

"Okay," Dylan said, not sure she wanted to know what was going on between the two of them. Without a glance back she headed into the gardens, ready to head in the opposite direction of the way Sam had taken, who was focused on finding the Anomaly first. Dylan was more concerned with any creatures that might have come through.

"She looks like she was on the losing end of a fight," Harlow growled at Evan once Dylan was out of earshot.

"You should see the other guy," Evan replied.

"I told you to protect her," he said.

"And I have, to the best of my ability. This isn't a walk in the park Detective. You know what kind of creatures we deal with," he replied.

"I don't like you Cross and I really don't like what you've done to her. The Dylan I knew would never have asked me to do this."

"You don't think she would ask you to save lives? Then you don't know Dylan the way you think you do. There's nothing she wouldn't do to save lives or to help those creatures. She belongs here, doing this, and if you can't see that then you have no right to be in her life," Evan said, his blue eyes darkening for a moment, before he shook his head, and walked away from Detective Harlow without a backward glance, ignoring the mutterings that met his back.

"Guys I found the Anomaly!" Sam's excited voice came over the Bluetooth.

"That's great Sam where is it?" Evan asked.

"Five meters south of the West end of Heron Lake, near the path," she replied.

"Any sign of an incursion?" Dylan asked.

"I see tracks, headed west of the lake. I'm going to follow them."

"No!" Dylan and Evan said together.

Both of them were thinking of what happened about five months ago and neither of them wanted to witness that again, not this soon. There were some parts of history neither of them wanted to repeat and that was definitely one of them. Evan ordered Sam to guard the Anomaly and wait for them. The minute Dylan and Evan arrived they were going to track down the creature and hopefully get it back across to keep history from changing all around them again.

"So are you going to tell me what that was about back there?" Dylan asked the moment Evan caught up. Both of them were already jogging toward the location of the Anomaly, their eyes flicking around them, looking for any creatures, as they moved as quickly as they dared.

"I figured you had the same thought. I don't want to see Sam dead again," Evan said, his eyes flicking down to the detector for a moment and then back up. Once they got to the Anomaly they'd be able to measure how long it would stay and hopefully it would give them a clear reading this time and not lead to another juncture.

"Not about Sam. What were you and Harlow discussing?" Dylan asked.

"How I'm going to get you killed," Evan said, his eyes flickering back up to the path.

"Don't be too hard on him. He's been like an older brother to me. Between him and Drake they basically got me into the Predator Control outfit and Harlow hasn't really forgiven me quite yet for choosing to take it off."

"Not sure he thinks of you as a young sister."

"You're way off base there," Dylan said.

"Am I?" Evan asked.

"We've been friends for years. There is nothing romantic between us and never has been," she said with a short laugh.

"He doesn't seem to understand why you chose to leave Predator Control," he said gruffly changing the topic.

"We've avoided talking about it as much as possible. He doesn't seem to like discussing my job or hobbies anymore. He's really good about updating me on Predator Control, though," Dylan said with a smirk. "I think he's still hoping I reconsider."

"Yeah well I'm hoping you don't," Evan replied.

"Evan Cross are you jealous?" her smile grew.

"More afraid of being the only one with the memories of a life that didn't happen," he said, his voice serious.

The smile on her face faded.

"And afraid I won't get to see you put Leeds on a dissection table like you promised him," Evan said with a smile turning up the corners of his lips.

Dylan smiled at that with a nod of her head before Sam and the Anomaly came into view. Sure enough Dylan could already see the track marks and it wasn't good. When she came to a stop she immediately bent down and measured the tracks with her hand.

"We have a problem," Evan said as he held the detector to the Anomaly, watching the time gage come to a stop.

"We have more than one," Dylan said.

Evan glanced down at the trail, his eyes taking in the large tracks. That was definitely not good.

"We have half an hour before the Anomaly closes," Evan said.

"Then we better hurry. We're looking for more than one quadrupedal dinosaurs that are capable of bipedalism. And they're very large," Dylan said, her eyes moving across the trail and toward a thick batch of trees. There were plenty of broken branches, which meant more than one creature, and they weren't going to be small.

"Any idea what it is?" Evan asked.

"From these tracks, I'm only hoping it isn't a carnivore," Dylan replied seriously.

"When have we ever got that lucky?" Evan asked, mirroring her earlier words.

Dylan smirked up at him before she got to her feet. She pulled the taser rifle around in front of her and glanced back at Sam.

"Keep your eye out. You'll see it before it's too close, but I have no idea how fast this creature is until I find it," Dylan said.

"Shouldn't be too hard if it's that big," Evan replied.

"Let's hope not," she replied with a shake of her head. "Ready?"

"Yeah," he confirmed.

Dylan took the lead as they followed the tracks into the trees, heading west of the lake. This time they didn't talk, they just walked in silence, Dylan crouching every so often in an attempt to get a headcount of how many creatures had wandered through the Anomaly. It wasn't looking good so far.

"Dylan…" Evan said slowly.

"Evan I'm counting at least six different tracks. It's hard to tell, it's like they've tried to stay in each other's, but you can clearly see where they've stepped out…" Dylan said as she stared at the ground.

"Dylan," Evan said more forcefully.

"What…" Dylan started as her eyes glanced up.

Everything stopped at that moment as Dylan stared in awe. A smile lit up her face as she gazed at a nine meter long Hypacrosaurus, which had to weigh nearly four tonnes. It was one of the duckbill dinosaurs that lived during the late Cretaceous. It had a pointed hollow crest on the top of its skull, not as tall as most other duckbills, but wider side to side, with a small bony point at the rear of its skull. It also had tall neural spines that ran the length of its back. What was more amazing was the eight smaller Hypacrosaurs, about the size of a gorilla, which trailed behind it, following its lead like ducklings to their mother.

"Oh my God, Evan," Dylan said breathlessly, tears stinging her eyes.

Evan crouched down next to Dylan, his own breath taken away. He might not understand anything about dinosaurs, but what he did know was that these not quite bipedal reptiles were herbivores. For a moment they just stared at them, watching as mother duck moved through the plant life, her ducklings trailing behind her, taking her lead.

"Hypacrosaurs. They're completely harmless. They're like the deer of the Late Cretaceous period. What set them apart from any other dinosaur was how they lived in family groups, had large nesting areas, much like penguins, and they cared for their children upon hatching. They're one of the most docile of creatures," Dylan whispered in awe, not wanting to startle the majestic creatures.

"We're not going to be able to sedate them," Evan replied. "There's no way we could get them back to the Anomaly, not in fifteen minutes."

"I have an idea, but you're not going to like it," Dylan said, as she turned to look at Evan, her green eyes sparkling and a contagious smile stretching across her face.

"Do I ever?" Evan asked, a smirk crossing his own features in return.


	5. Gone with the Wind

**GONE WITH THE WIND**

* * *

"**She made herself stronger by fighting with the wind." – Frances Hodgson Burnett**

* * *

Previously: The team, minus Toby still under the care of Dr. Fridkin,track down another Anomaly in the heart of Vancouver. With multiple incursions and less than fifteen minutes before the Anomaly closes Evan and Dylan must implement a dangerous plan to ensure the family of Hypacrosaurs get home.

* * *

"I know you said I wouldn't like this plan, but this is crazy," Evan said as he stood behind the trees, out of sight of the five meter tall dinosaurs that were happily eating their way through the botanical garden.

Dylan still hadn't lost the smile on her face or the twinkle in her eyes. She'd just finished giving Evan all the details of her plan, a plan that was going to risk their lives in the process, but they were running out of time. If they couldn't get that family of Hypacrosaurs back through the Anomaly before it closed they could change the way the world evolved. They'd always known that was possible, but after returning to a completely different world yesterday they both now knew just how important it was to put everything back.

"Do you have a better idea?" Dylan asked.

"No. You're in no condition to do this though, so I will," Evan said as he pulled the strap of his taser rifle over his head and handed it to Dylan.

"Are you sure?" she asked.

"Yeah," he said with a nod of his head.

Dylan peered around the branches of the tree to spy on the family. They didn't seem to even notice that their world had changed so drastically since they'd walked through that Anomaly. That was either going to make things easier, or completely impossible.

"Guys, less than ten minutes now," Sam's voice rang through their ear pieces.

"Where is he?" Evan asked as he turned his eyes on Dylan.

"He should be here," Dylan said as she turned and watched the path. The moment she devised her plan Dylan had given Detective Harlow a call. The only chance they had lay with him. If he didn't bring the gardener's truck there was no way they could follow through with their plan.

Hardly a minute after the words left her mouth Detective Harlow came bursting through the trees and brush with a sporty green gardener truck, or a Might-E Truck to be exact used by the gardeners. There was a skeptical look on his face and Dylan could almost hear him telling her to hurry it up. She smirked at his expression and then glanced back down at the truck.

"How fast does it go?" Dylan asked.

"About forty km/h," Harlow replied.

"Is that going to be fast enough?" Evan asked.

"I hope so," Dylan replied, though she wasn't quite certain about that. "Maybe it won't notice right away."

"Did I mention that I really don't like this plan?" Evan grimaced as he glanced at Harlow.

"Five minutes, better get going," Dylan said without acknowledging Evan's worried expression.

This was the fun part, or the completely insane part, however you wanted to think of it. Evan sighed and shook his head before nodding at Harlow. The two of them were going to have to work together at the moment and it wasn't the easiest for either one of them. Dylan's knee was still bandaged and a bit swollen now from all their walking, so there was no way she was going to be able to help with this part of the idiotic plan. Evan glanced through the tree branches, making sure the Hypacrosaurs were still grazing. They'd started filtering around the trees a bit, staying close to their mother, but not right at her heels. The monster of a creature rivaled the size of the Albertosaurus they'd dealt with yesterday; the only difference was the fact that it was a herbivore. It could still crush them if they weren't careful though.

"That one," Evan whispered to Harlow as he pointed to the smallest member of the family, being about a meter and a half in height. Hopefully it didn't weigh has much as it looked, elsewise they were dead.

The runt of the pack was behind the rest of them, feeding on a bush no taller than its chest. It didn't stray from its mother's shadow though. With a deep breath Evan slipped around the trees, Harlow right behind him. Within seconds they were upon the small dinosaur.

It was at this point that all hell broke loose. Dylan heard the shrill cry of the animal and knew that luck was definitely not playing nice. With a grunt she ran to the truck and jumped into the driver's seat. She reversed into the clearing where Harlow and Evan were busy trying to carry the small dinosaur as quickly as possible, while the mother wailed in protest. There was a dangerous look in the mother's eye and suddenly the clearing became smaller as she started charging.

Harlow and Evan grunted against the flailing creature in their arms as they loaded it into the back of the truck and jumped in after it. The minute they were in they held tight to the railing of the truck.

"Go!" Evan shouted.

"Hang on!" Dylan replied as she gunned the Might-E Truck. It spun out from the weight before jerking forward, driven into forward by the mother Hypacrosaurus who was trying to get to her baby.

The seven other children followed at a run behind their mother as she charged after the truck. Dylan had the pedal pressed to the floor and was weaving dangerously through the brush and trees, trying to slow the path of the mother so they could get far enough ahead for her plan to work. She didn't dare slow down or glance back for fear of hitting something. She had no idea if Evan or Harlow were still on the truck.

"Sam clear the way we're coming in hot!" Dylan called into her earpiece. She weaved around another trunk before the Anomaly came into sight.

"You have less than a minute to get them through," Sam said as she ran from the Anomaly, trying to stay out of the way.

"Thirty seconds should do," Dylan said as she barreled toward the Anomaly, waiting until the last moment before she hit the brake and turned the wheel hard. The truck skidded and groaned to a stop in front of the Anomaly, jerking the occupants against the side, threatening to roll.

Dylan jumped out glad to see Harlow and Evan struggling to keep the terrified Hypacrosaurus under control so they could get it out safely.

"Out of time!" Dylan shouted as the mother bolted out of the trees they'd just come through.

They hoisted the dinosaur up and ran for the Anomaly, a kick here and there from the dinosaur would result in bruises later, but none of them cared as they attempted to gently toss the animal back through. The wail of the mother broke through their world and seconds later the truck was crushed. All three of them bolted as the mother followed after her baby, the seven other children following behind her.

"Ha!" Sam cheered excitedly as she ran from the cover of the trees.

"Look at that, twenty seconds to spare," Evan said breathlessly as he looked at the timer.

A loud low pitched wail made them jump, just as another full grown Hypacrosaurus appeared from behind the same trees as the others. This was larger than the female they'd just sent through and impossibly angrier. The only thing it could be was the male and leader of the family pack.

"We have to get it back through," Dylan said quickly as the charging dinosaur headed right for them.

She veered off from the others running for the Anomaly. They had seconds to get him through, back to his family. He must have been hiding out of sight somewhere. She kicked herself mentally for not noticing that detail in the tracks. It was obvious to her now that there had to be more than one adult around. The sight of the babies had left her in a state of awe, one that had riddled her brain with stupidity, blinded her to the existence of the male that led their family.

"Hey over here!" she shouted as she ran, grabbing the attention of the huge Hypacrosaurus.

It moved seamlessly from one direction to another, chasing down the easier target, the closer target. The pain in Dylan's knee was worsening and she knew she was slowing, but she wasn't about to stop.

"Five seconds Dylan, get out of there!" Evan exclaimed.

Dylan pushed herself on, the dinosaur heading straight for her. The ground vibrated under her feet. With a final push she was there and she jumped to the side, rolling to get out from under its feet as it continued charging through the Anomaly as it closed behind the massive creature.

For a moment everyone just stood there, waiting to see if another creature was going to suddenly appear, but all was quiet. Dylan's laughter filled the air then. She was laying on her back, staring up at the sunny summer day, her lungs burning. She was recalling the incident with the Triceratops. This had been quite similar. A shadow fell over her form and she grinned as she looked up at Evan, her strawberry blonde hair haloing her face.

"You're insane," Evan said, though a smile was clearly visible on his face.

"At least we didn't have to worry about being eaten," Dylan replied.

"This is true," he replied as he held out his hand to her.

Dylan laughed as she took his hand, letting him help her to her feet. Her knee was screaming at her and probably swollen again. Sam was laughing in exhilaration near Harlow, who seemed to be clearly ruffled by everything, and more than likely trying to figure out a story to tell about the nearly smashed Might-E Truck the gardeners used. Hopefully he hadn't asked permission to use it. The staff could just muddle through what they thought happened, without asking police involvement.

Evan slipped his arm under Dylan's and around her back to help her walk. She really was fine to walk on her own, but admittedly she enjoyed the feel of his arm around her and chose not to object just yet.

"Was that really necessary?" Detective Harlow asked as he shook his head at Dylan.

"To ensure that we don't do irreversible damage to the timeline we have to get as many creatures as we can back through to their own time. One dinosaur left here could have a severe impact on how we evolved. So yes, it was necessary," Dylan replied.

"Not at the cost of your own life," he grumbled in return.

"Nate," Dylan chastised.

The use of Harlow's first name made him shut his mouth, a glare issuing instead. Dylan just smiled innocently at him. They'd known each other for a very long time and she had no doubt that Detective Nathaniel Harlow would somehow manage to get back at her in some form or fashion that befitted his nature. He was a good guy and an even better detective, but she had asked a huge favor of him today and she knew one day he would ask her for a favor in return. Probably in regards to another Anomaly or creature attack like with Leggy.

It didn't take long before they were back out of the gardens and the public was already streaming back in to enjoy the nice weather and beautiful scenery. None of them had the heart to tell the staff about the ruined vegetation that was going to need to be replaced. It would have been heartbreaking and difficult to explain why the trees were going to need trimmed down for new growth six meters or so up. Instead they told the staff that the area was cleared and if they had any questions to call Captain Kenneth Leeds.

"How angry do you think he's going to be when he finds out there was an Anomaly we didn't tell him about?" Dylan asked on the ride back to Cross Photonics.

"I imagine as angry as Ange will be," Evan said, his lips pursed.

"What are we going to do about Project Magnet?" she asked softly.

"I don't know yet. They saved Toby's life and I doubt they're going to let her leave there until they have assurances that we work together," he replied.

"If Mac's change in uniform brought on this much change in the world, what's going to happen if they go forth with their idiotic plan of clean energy?"

"Introducing that kind of element into the environment before it's meant to be there could be catastrophic, world ending even. Humans might never even evolve to use it, something else might instead. There are so many scenarios and none of them end well for us."

"If we work with them do you think we could stop them?"

"I doubt they'll trust us enough to give us that opportunity."

"You're probably right, but what other choice do we have? Sooner or later we're going to get an Anomaly that won't close as quickly and we'll be forced to ask for aide."

"I know," Evan said simply, his eyes flicking over to meet Dylan's for a moment before they returned to the rode as they turned into Cross Photonics.

Dylan didn't push the subject any more, letting a sad, but comfortable silence fall between them. Adjusting to this world was becoming difficult and the last thing they needed was to be at each other's throats this soon. They needed each other more than ever right now.

Evan slipped out of the car and around to Dylan's side, helping her out. They managed to make it only a few steps before a familiar face stepped into their line of sight, heading away from the entrance to Cross Photonics and toward the struggling pair. The wild dark hair seemed a bit shaggier than last time they saw him and yet there was no mistaking the ARC patch on the shoulders of his coat.

"Connor Temple, this was sooner than I expected," Evan said as he nodded at the man.

"For you," Connor replied cryptically, his eyes taking in their bedraggled appearance.

"A family of Hypacrosaurs," Dylan said in explanation to the grass and dirt that stained their clothes and skin.

"Really?" he asked excitement lacing his voice.

"Yeah," she replied with a grin.

"I'm assuming you came here looking for your weapons?" Evan asked interrupting the pair of them.

"Right, yes. We're here by permission of the Prime Minister and should have full support of the Canadian government," Connor said.

"Good luck convincing the military of that," Dylan said with a short laugh.

"I hear the Prime Minister can be very persuasive," Connor replied.

"What do you mean by we?" Evan asked, glancing around the parking lot.

Connor nodded his head in the direction of another member of his team leaning against a rental. The man moved then, striding in their direction, wearing the same jacket as Connor. The sun glinted off his aviators for a moment, obscuring the features of his face until he was closer. His tan skin and black hair stood out in contrast to the uniform, but that's not what made Dylan stared at the figure, her mouth slightly agape. Evan's whole body seemed to tense as he too recognized the figure.

"I'd like you to meet one of my team members…" Connor started.

"Mac Rendell," Evan finished for him, his blue eyes staring at the ghost of his friend.


	6. The Time Machine

Author's Note: I just want to thank everyone for the reviews, follows, and favorites. It means the world to me.

* * *

**THE TIME MACHINE**

* * *

"**Perhaps I want the old days back again **

**and they'll never come back, **

**and I am haunted by the memory of them **

**and of the world falling about my ears." – Margaret Mitchell**

* * *

Previously: A risky plan to return the Hypacrosaurs home was carried out with flying colors, thanks to the help of Detective Harlow. After returning to Cross Photonics Evan and Dylan come face to face with ARC member Connor Temple and his associate…Mac Rendell.

* * *

Dylan leaned back in the couch, her knee resting on a pillow, elevated above her heart to counteract some of the swelling that had gone back up after the run in with the dinosaurs. It had been a long awkward walk back to the Tank with the guys, mainly down so she could get sat down and off her feet. Silence had descended over the group when Evan had finished Connor's sentence. It was made even worse by the arrival of Samantha, who had no idea who Mac was and he, her. It was more than Dylan wanted to deal with at the moment. Evan must have been feeling the same way because he sent Sam on ahead to check up on Toby while the four of them headed into Cross Photonics to discuss the situation.

"You changed something," Connor blurted out as he turned to face Evan after everyone settled into the room, Mac onto the couch across from Dylan. Evan and Connor were both standing, Evan with his hands stuck in his pockets, and Connor talking with his hands.

"We don't even know what happened. We knew something was wrong, but when we came out of it everything was fine, or so we thought," Dylan said, trying to defend Evan. It wasn't like they'd done something on purpose. Sure they had their suspicions on what happened, but it was almost as if Connor was accusing them directly.

"How come I don't remember any of this," Mac piped up finally, he seemed to have fallen into a state of shock after hearing a complete stranger rattle of his name, not to mention act like he knew him.

"Unless you're actually in an Anomaly when the time line changes you don't even know about it, you just go on livin', like it was always that way. Understand?" Connor asked as he flicked his brown eyes back to Mac.

"But this other bloke, he's me?" Mac asked.

"Some things you should never know. I'm sure Jenny would prefer never havin' known about Claudia Brown," Connor replied, trying to deter Mac.

"Claudia Brown?" Evan asked, his brows furrowing.

"Long story," Connor said, his hand waving off the subject.

"Okay so say we changed something is there a way to fix it?" Evan asked.

"No. You can't go back and fix it. The more you try to fix something the worse it becomes. Best just leave it be and whatever you do don't share it with the people involved," he said as he ran his hand over his face.

"Stuff that, if there was another me I want to know about him," Mac protested.

"That Mac never existed. Do you understand that, mate? This is who you are and you should be focusin' on that," Connor said with a shake of his head.

Dylan shook her own head, her eyes flickering up to meet Evan's. There was a sad look on his face and for a moment Dylan wondered what Evan was thinking. Was he worried about his old friend? Did he think it was better this way? Or was he questioning whether or not it was Mac that had changed everything? By what Connor had said whatever had been changed had happened in the same place they had been, elsewise they wouldn't remember any of this. If that was true then other things they hadn't even thought to check had changed. Dylan wasn't sure if she wanted to know how the history of the world had changed. Maybe it was because the Anomaly they were in was in the past before the one Mac had gone through to save Evan? The questions filled her mind, beating against her skull, until she rubbed her temples in an attempt to ease the pounding.

"Is there a way for us to forget?" Evan asked with a sigh.

"Sorry mate. That's the worse part of it, being the only one that remembers," Connor said sympathetically.

"Well, not the only one," Evan said, his blue eyes meeting the green eyes of Dylan for a moment.

The weight that had settled on Evan's shoulders the moment he'd stepped through the Anomaly into the time and place of his wife's death six years ago had been building, but as he held Dylan's gaze the pain in his chest lessened just a little. It wasn't much, but it gave him room to breathe deep and to slowly heal the wounds that had been ripped open after six years of obsessive behavior. For a moment he allowed himself to get lost in her eyes to forget all the emotional pain he kept putting himself through every time he chose to walk down to Level A. He had been ripping the scab off the wound for the last six years and now he was finally ready to let it heal, now that he had his answer, knowing that he had been the one to cause Brooke's death was a hard pill to swallow, but it was the answer he had sought.

"It'll be a burden to be sure," Connor said as he clapped a hand on Evan's shoulder. "Now about my EMD's…"

It took half an hour after the mention of the guns before everyone found their way to Project Magnet's headquarters. Evan had called Ange on the way to let her know what was going on. It took less than thirty seconds on the phone with her before Evan was being chastised for not alerting them to the Anomaly and incursion from that morning. The only reason they even knew about it was a call they received about a certain Might-E Truck that had been pulverized and a bunch of damaged foliage that needed to be replaced.

If that wasn't enough of a surprise for her, Ange was even more irritated by the fact that two ARC employees had arrived to take possession of the guns her team was still trying to figure out. No doubt they'd already taken them apart and were desperately trying to reassemble them before they arrived. Evan knew without a doubt that they'd probably already taken pictures and studied them to death as it was. The design was sure to show up in the hands of the military now and there wasn't anything he could do to stop it.

"Hi, welcome to Project Magnet. I'm Captain Kenneth Leeds and I'm currently heading this project and I believe you've already met our Director of Operations, Angelika Finch" Leeds said as he gestured to Ange with his hand as he greeted Connor and Mac.

"Right, I remember you. Told you I'd be back for my guns," Connor said with a nod of his head.

"So I see," Ange replied with a smile that would have fooled anyone, but Evan knew that it wasn't real.

"This is Connor Temple and Mac Rendell," Evan said, rushing over Mac's name, hoping that Ange and Leeds didn't remember their little outburst yesterday about him.

"Mac Rendell?" Ange repeated, her eyes flickering to Evan and back to the man.

Apparently they weren't so lucky. How was Evan ever going to explain what happened? Yesterday Dylan and Evan had spoken too much and had compromised far more than they intended to. Now with this Mac Rendell showing up so soon after they let loose about him it was going to be harder to keep Ange and Leeds out of the loop of what had happened. Evan had no doubt that Connor was right. Some things were better left buried in the darkest corner possible. There was no way he could let them know. Sensing this, Connor quirked his brow up and turned his attention back to Captain Leeds.

"As you're headin' this 'operation' I believe you understand why we're here?" Connor asked rhetorically as he gestured for Leeds to head back inside.

"Right, yes. Though I am a bit unclear as to whom you work for," Leeds said as he led the group inside.

"Really can't help you there, mate," Connor said with a shrug.

Ken Leeds frowned at his words, but nodded as if he understood. There had been little time for questions when he'd received the call and though he was always one to question authority he found his tongue tied by the end. There were only so many questions you could ask when on the phone with the General. It wasn't the most pleasant of conversations he'd had with that particular General either. Though, it may have had more to do with his past as opposed to what happened yesterday, with the death of Colonel Hall, multiple injuries, and dozens of witnesses, plus the loss of one Albertosaurus.

"I could give you a tour of the facility if you'd like?" Captain Leeds said as he paused in the foyer of the building, the white washed walls and modern furniture gave it a hospital like feel.

"Are you stallin'?" Connor asked, his brows furrowing together as he glanced to Evan. Evan nodded his head imperceptibly.

"Stalling? Not at all. I just thought if we're going to be working together we should all be on the same page," Leeds said.

"Let's get this clear. We're not workin' together. I thought that'd be clear after what happened with the Albertosaurus. You can't be trusted to put things back the way they're supposed to be, meanin' we're not on the same page at all," Connor said.

Evan couldn't keep his lips from pulling up into a smile. He was definitely starting to like this Connor character. He wasn't one to push around and if he was being honest about things he knew that Connor had loads to share, things that could help Evan put everything back. The only problem was dealing with Project Magnet. With Hall out of the picture things would be easier, but Evan had a bad feeling that whoever took over would be far worse. There was a chance he wouldn't even be free to deal with the Anomalies at all with the next Colonel. When all was said and done Evan might very well end up locked in a basement of some military base. Colonel Hall would have had no problem carrying out that order and he was sure the next one would do the same.

"That's exactly why we should share resources. The more we know about the Anomalies and the consequences the more we can do what's right. Isn't that what you want? You want to make sure nothing changes. Well if we knew more about what consequences our actions have on the past then we can keep the damage to a minimal. Your knowledge and resources are exactly what we need to make sure that happens," Ange said, already playing diplomat.

"See, I don't think you're hearin' me. You can't mess with the past, it's a bad idea. Nothin' good can come of it. Trust me on that. Now someone please take me to my sexy lookin' guns," Connor said, clearly finished with the conversation.

Dylan grinned. Whatever leverage Connor had was enough to make even Leeds a bit nervous. It was clear that ARC was a very reputable company in England and more importantly it seemed to get the job done. Connor was reluctant to share anything with Leeds and Ange, but she hoped he felt different about them. There was so much they could learn from Connor and Dylan was eager to know how successful they were at getting the creatures back home and what they did when they couldn't.

"About the guns…we may have, what's the word, dismantled them and in our haste have been unable to reassemble them," Leeds said slowly.

"What part of 'give them to Evan Cross' did you not understand?" Connor asked, his brown eyes falling on Ange before he sighed. "Right, just take me to the lab. I'll reassemble them and then we have to be on our way."

"Actually think I might stick around for a bit," Mac interrupted, his eyes falling on his teammate.

"What?" Connor asked, his head jerking to his right so he could see Mac clearly.

"Think I need a bit of a vacation," Mac smiled.

"Just a minute," Connor said before he grabbed Mac's arm and pulled him over to a corner away from prying ears. "This is not a good idea, mate."

"I'm not going to pry. I just need some fresh air. Besides, it's not like you need me. Becker and Jess are back from their honeymoon, so he'll be taking back over. I'll get pushed back to another team and really I could use some time off so I don't get sanctioned," Mac reasoned.

"It's a bad idea," Connor protested, but he sighed at the look on his friends face. "Fine, but trust me when I tell you that learnin' about who you were supposed to be isn't what you want."

"Afraid I'll go mental?" Mac asked.

"A bit, just call Lester and tell him yourself. I think he might kill me if I'm the one to tell him" Connor groaned as they moved back to the group, Mac not far behind him.

Part of him was terrified for his friend and the secrets he'd uncover about the Mac that didn't exist, but there was also that understanding of needing to know. Mac was too curious for his own good, that's what had landed him at the ARC in the first place. He was a good soldier, but he was a bit lousy at taking direction, which is why he'd ignored a direct order to guard a building and had instead wandered inside to find out why he needed to be there. He'd walked right into a flock of Procompsognathus, a small theropod from the late Triassic period, which had cornered Connor and Abby.

Under the circumstances ARC had already lost one soldier to the compys and it seemed they were going to lose two more, but Mac had surprised all of them, even Matt. Without hesitation he broke the glass on the emergency fire hose and started spraying the creatures before they took a bite out of them. Most soldiers would have just started firing, but Mac had good sense to know that he wouldn't hit enough of them to stop them from attacking him, but the hose was more likely to hit more of them. It saved Connor and Abby and countless others for his quick thinking. Matt and Becker recommended him moved to the ARC afterward. He and Connor had been mates ever since.

"Right, so take me to the guns and I'll be headed out after I've finished with them," Connor said as he clapped his hands.

"We should talk before you go," Evan interjected.

"Yeah, mate," Connor nodded at Evan. There was a lot they had to discuss and most of it centered on Mac and his obvious attempt to figure out what life he'd had in Vancouver, B.C.

"Right this way," Leeds said, pulling Connor away from the group and down toward the lab where their people had been trying to understand how to build more EMD's.

"Well, how would you like to meet another member of our team?" Evan asked, his eyes turning on Mac.

"Sure, then we can have a proper chat, yeah?" Mac asked as he flicked his eyes between Evan and Dylan.

"Yeah," Evan said as he pursed his lips before he nodded.

"After you then," Mac said with a smile.

Evan glanced over at Dylan, their eyes meeting for a moment. They were going to have to tip toe around Mac. They both knew how persistent he could be and there was nothing that could stop him from finding out about the life he had lived with them. The only thing they could do was try to keep as much of it hidden as possible, including what happened between him and Samantha, or how close he and Toby had become. They were skating on thin ice and the other team had the puck. Things were not looking good.


End file.
